


Closer Now than Before

by Squishy_TRex



Category: Dragon Age (Video Games), Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: Angst, F/F, First Kiss, Implied Romantic Tension, Implied Sexual Content, Kissing, Language, Post-Canon, Rescue, Reunion, mutual respect
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-06
Updated: 2018-10-06
Packaged: 2019-07-27 07:44:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,463
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16214573
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Squishy_TRex/pseuds/Squishy_TRex
Summary: Vivienne and Sera are reunited under unusual circumstances.





	Closer Now than Before

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Panny](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Panny/gifts).



> Sera does call Vivienne a bitch, just so everyone's aware. It is in the canon of the game and it's in a positive context here, but I just wanted to warn any reading.

Not that she would ever openly admit to it, but Vivienne found that she missed her time with the motley crew of the Inquisition. Especially in moments like these, traipsing around the Exalted Plains accompanied by the few somewhat competent mages she could find in what remained of the Orlesian Circle. And even they were still horribly mediocre.

She glanced a look behind her at said mages, finding herself mildly surprised they were managing to keep up. They totaled five, including herself, and though a quest like this, investigating mysterious magical activity, wouldn’t require that high a number, it had been reportedly happening near the old ramparts. Vivienne shivered at the memories of her previous visits.

“Grand Enchanter?”

Vivienne turned towards the voice, a young Orlesian peasant woman by the name of Lucia Sila whose status as a mage was the only gift life had managed to bestow her.

She nervously hide her face when Vivienne looked at her. “I’m sensing unusual amounts of spirit magic. Connections to the Fade.” She

Vivienne raised an eyebrow. “My dear, this area has been a battlefield for centuries. I daresay there’s more restless spirits here than living souls anywhere else.”

Her gaze slid over to the other mages, all men – two human, one Elven – who were doing poor jobs of concealing their snickers.

“Do any of you have anything to add to this expedition? Or is this merely a sightseeing experience for you? At least your compatriot is trying to contribute, though I’m not sure any of you are capable of the most obvious of observations.”

They grew quiet, smiles sliding off their faces, and, satisfied, Vivienne turned back around and picked up the pace towards the nearest rampart, the remains of its wooden battlements giving an eerie skeletal appearance as she drew closer.

Loathe as she was to admit it, as she entered the enclosed area, Vivienne sensed an unusual amount of spiritual energy surrounding the place. And worse, it felt recent too, which suddenly made their mission that much more dangerous.

“Mages,” she called out authoritatively. “Form up near me and be ready. I sense we’ll have more of a fight than we expected.

No response. She slowly turned to face her charges, icy dread clutching at her chest and saw three of them trapped in a magical field. The only one outside of it was Philippe Favre, a young upstart descended from a minor house of Orlesian nobility who had ever only seemed bored with the duties and accommodations required of mages. She’d met nugs with more initiative than him, which made this move all the more surprising. Not that she’d let that on.

“Sorry Grand Enchanter,” Philippe said, not sounding sorry in the slightest. “But I’ve found some new compatriots I’d rather align myself with.”

The sound of footsteps caused Vivienne to whirl back around, coming face to face with two more human men carrying staffs that looked old, the wood splintered and brittle. Even without noticing their shoddy wardrobes and unkempt appearances, she’d have known what they were in an instant.

“Apostates,” Vivienne spat out. “I thought the rest of you had scurried away to hide like the rats you are.”

The taller of the two only smirked at her. “Oh, but Grand Enchanter,” he said her title like he tasted something bitter. “We just had to get an audience with you so we could personally congratulate you on your new title.” His lips curled in obvious disgust.

Vivienne’s face took on an unimpressed look. “Oh, was all this fuss for me? Honestly, a written invitation would be easier. Could’ve solved all this business in true Orlesian fashion.” She openly eyed them up and down. “Although that would require making some kind of effort in your appearance.”

The second one growled. “No more politics. We’re done playing your games.”

Narrowing her eyes, Vivienne tightly gripped her staff, feeling a change in the air. “Yes, I quite agree. Though it’s your kind of games I take issue with.”

With a swift combined movement, the two apostates conjured a rage demon in between them, which took one look at Vivienne and pulled itself up to its full height and roared with all the fury it was made out of.

“Andraste’s tits,” she muttered under her breath, the memory of her dearly missed – and horribly foul-mouthed – Inquisitor sharply appearing in her mind.

Without wasting another second, Vivienne conjured up an ice storm and went to work taking down the rage demon. By itself, it wouldn’t have posed much of a threat, but she also had to contend with the two apostates as well. In a flurry of practiced movements, she elegantly maneuvered around their makeshift battlefield. It didn’t take long for the rage demon to grow sluggish enough for her to keep out of its reach, but she didn’t expect her human opponents to be as strong as they were proving. They were relentless, moving in tandem and wielding their staffs like broadswords.

It was just as she finally managed to shatter the rage demon that one of them – the shorter one – managed to get a decent hit, a bludgeon against her side that burned with a tremendous amount of fire magic. She gasped, staggering back, and as he advanced she moved purely on instinct, deflecting his next attack and sending several ice shards through his chest. He slumped down, dead, with his fellow staring at the sight in horror. Then, anger, directed at her.

“You bitch!” He screamed and came at her with renewed strength, which, against her weakened state, was enough to overpower her and sending her to the ground, staff flying out of reach. She struggled to get up but found herself facing the business end of his own staff.

“You’re finished,” he . She glared up at him.

“I refuse to die by the likes of you.”

His answering smile was sadistic. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure you suffer first.” Without looking away, he called out to her traitorous mage. “Philippe, burn her acolytes to ashes.”

The only response was a loud gurgling noise that had the apostate looking up in confusion. Whatever he saw made his face turn pale, which, in turn, gave Vivienne a small measure of relief.

“Philippe? That his name?” A strikingly familiar voice called out.  “Ugh, he’s lucky I only shot an arrow through his neck, not up his arsehole, the prick.”

Vivienne closed her eyes. “Maker preserve me.”

And before the apostate leader could retaliate, Vivienne released a burst of ice magic that not only froze him, but sent him flying back hard enough to shatter.

“Alright there Viv?” Sera called out behind her. Vivienne sighed as she gathered herself and turned to face her former Inquisition party member and now, apparent savior.

“You know, I’m Grand Enchanter now.”

Sera wrinkled her nose. “Yeah, you know well enough I ain’t calling you that.” Her hair was longer, enough for a braid, but her sense of style was still severely lacking.

She smirked, looking at Vivienne’s shaken mages, freed from their imprisonment. “Got a camp, not far, let your baby mages rest. Looks like one of ‘em could use a change of breeches.” She sniggered at her own off-color joke.

Vivienne sighed heavily.

“By all means, lead the way.”

* * *

 

The camp, as promised, wasn’t far, and allowed them all to rest. Dusk arrived quickly, and thankfully, Lucia offered to cook as thanks which spared them all from whatever Sera considered food. It wasn’t long after that the three mages went to sleep, leaving Vivienne and Sera alone by the campfire. Vivienne had little practice in feeling awkward but Sera had always managed to upend her sense of normalcy.

“I see you’ve been keeping busy.” Vivienne said, apropos of nothing.

The firelight flickered across Sera’s smile, oddly beautiful to Vivienne.

“Yeah, still with the Jenny, more work than ever now that all the little people know who I am.” Her face took on a sadder quality. “And who I was friends with.”

Vivienne nodded. “I miss her too.”

Sera looked at her, something calculating in her gaze for a moment. Vivienne held the look until it softened back into a smile.

“I’m the first one you’ve seen since, then? Funny that.”

Vivienne found herself smiling. “Hardly under the most ideal circumstances.” She sobered, remembering the events from earlier. “Thank you,” she said sincerely. “You truly saved us back there.”

Sera waved her off. “I was here on Jenny business anyway.” She paused. “It’s nice seeing you, you know? Didn’t ever think I’d see anyone, after everything.” She faltered, bit her lip and looked away. “Glad it’s you though. I always did like you, much as I could.”

Stunned, Vivienne was silent for a moment. By the end of the Inquisition’s reign, the lot of them had grown closer, yes, but Vivienne harbored no delusions about her standing with the other Inquisition members. Aside from the Inquisitor, whom she considered a dear friend, she believed some small measure of respect all the rest had for her. Evidently, she was wrong.

Sera re-fixed her calculating gaze on Vivienne, as if she could sense her thoughts. But then she shifted back to her usual

“’Course I think it’s cause you were the biggest bitch I ever met.”

Vivienne looked at her flatly until Sera burst into giggles.

“Oh, you know it.” Her giggling subsided back to a smile, but there was something more underneath it this time. “You always knew it. Made me like you even more.” She stretched out a bit, still looking at Vivienne and, ah, she recognized that look.

Vivienne had certain expectations when she became Grand Enchanter, but there was a wide chasm between expectations and reality. And the loneliness, the loneliness was something Vivienne still struggled with. She felt like a gaping wound after Bastien’s death; healing as time went on, but never quite the same. And no one could be allowed close to the Grand Enchanter, not the way Bastien was. Neither her heart nor the position could take it. But maybe this – away from the Circle, among familiar and admittedly welcome company – is something she could have.

“Flattery,” Vivienne began, allowing herself to enjoy the attention. “Will get you everywhere, my dear.”

Sera shrugged. “Not really flattery. Can’t ever stomach giving it to you types.” Halting, she brought her bow onto her lap and plucked at the string. “You’re different though. A strong bitch I respect. And…admire, though I ain’t admitting that under torture. You get it, better than the others, what people down here…well, everywhere, really…are like.”

The sincerity in Sera’s words took Vivienne aback. Despite her better judgement, she felt herself…affected by what she was saying. Heart in her throat, she grappled for what to say. But every thought was chased away whenever she took notice of them and their surroundings. The fire was burning to its embers, the quiet noises of the night making themselves known, cooling air soothing on the skin she allowed herself to bare. Sera – chaos incarnate – still and closer now and looking at Vivienne with a heat she hadn’t felt since the last time she saw Bastien healthy.

“Not too bad to look at either,” Sera said softly, then smirked. “For a fancy mage.”

Vivienne took everything into account – the two of them, their histories, the differing personalities, responsibilities, the future – and decided to have this anyway.

Like all things in her life, Vivienne took the lead and closed the gap between her and Sera. She tasted sweet, like the apples they’d had with their meal. Soft warmth, a far cry from the ice Vivienne protected herself with. Sera leaned into the kiss, opening her mouth to let Vivienne in and in she went, deepening the kiss to what she felt was allowed. But all the chaotic energy Sera naturally exuded was finally coming to the surface, causing her actions to pick up speed and intensity and, by the Maker, Vivienne was not going to have their night end outside of the comfort of a tent. She stood up, pulling Sera with her and maneuvering them towards the tents, all while still kissing her.

Sera giggled between kisses. “You like this, yeah? Bossy, strong bitch tugging me ‘round every which way. Well, guess what?” She hitched herself up enough to place herself between one of Vivienne’s legs and rubbed herself right up against it.

“I like it too.” She was starting to pant and the heat exuding from between them was quickly dispelling any coolness in the night air. “Think you can tug me down into my tent,” Sera continued and lifted up to whisper dramatically, “Graaaaand Enchaaaaanter?”

Vivienne allowed herself a grin, stifling a laugh, unusually giddy from the effects of reckless lovemaking after such a long time alone. “Well, I suppose I owe you for today.” She partially meant it as jest, if only to help her offset the inherent absurdity she felt in this situation.

Sera’s face became guarded and she immediately pulled away. Even in the dark, Vivienne could make out her expression: not quite angry, but clearly close.

“Don’t want that,” she said. “It’s either real or isn’t. You’re here or you’re not.”

She held open the flap of her tent and gave a long look back at Vivienne before going inside.

This was dangerous, Vivienne knew. She had no delusions about it being real, something more than comfort and a mutual respect frosted by attraction. Yet, this was only one night and well, only they would know.

Without letting herself think about anything but the present moment and the way Sera kept looking at her, Vivienne followed her into the tent, closing it shut behind her.

* * *

The next morning, Vivienne work up alone. This didn’t offend her; she’d have been more bothered if Sera stayed. Thankfully, they both knew better. She lethargically came back to the world, the heavy scent of sex still permeating the air in the tent. Pulling the blankets around her naked body, she reached for her clothing and armor until she noticed something unusual beside her. Something clearly left for her.

She picked up the arrow and twirled it between her fingers, a small smile playing out on her face. There was a scrap of fabric caught in the arrowhead, clearly of Antivan fashion. She pulled it free and gently traced over its patterns. As clear an invitation as Sera would leave. Vivienne kept the fabric and arrow with her as she readied and departed with her mage charges, unable to forget the events of last night. Her smile remained as well and she couldn’t help but think of all the reasons the Grand Enchanter could use for a visit to Antiva.  

**Author's Note:**

> I took some liberties with the timeline but it's definitely after the events of Inquisition, but I really didn't factor in any DLC (mostly cause I haven't played them). Getting Sera's voice and personality into writing was much harder than I anticipated, hope it's not terribly out of character. I'm sorry for skipping over the sex, I'm not really confident in my abilities to write smut; I'm way more comfortable working on romantic/sexual tension. Anyway, I really hope I did justice to these two and that you enjoy the fic!


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